Spring Lake High School
Curriculum Map
English 9A
The following CCSS’s are embedded throughout the trimester, present in all units applicable:
RL.9-10.10 By the end of grade 9, read and comprehend literature, including stories, dramas, and poems, in the grades 9-10 complexity band proficiently,
with scaffolding as needed at the high end of the range.
RI.9-10.10 By the end of grade 9, read and comprehend literary nonfiction in the grades 9-10 text complexity band proficiently, with scaffolding as needed at
the high end of the range.
W.9-10.10 Write routinely over extended time frames (time for research, reflection, and revision) and shorter time frames (a single sitting or a day or two) for
a range of tasks, purposes, and audiences
S.L.9-10.6 Adapt speech to a variety of contexts and tasks, demonstrating command of formal English when indicated or appropriate. (See grades 9-10
Language standards 1and 3 on page 54 for specific expectations.)
L.9-10.2 Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing. a. Use a semicolon (and
perhaps a conjunctive adverb) to link two or more closely-related independent clauses; b) use a colon to introduce a list or quotation; c) spell correctly.
L.9-10.6 Acquire and use accurately general academic and domain-specific words and phrases, sufficient for reading, writing, speaking, and listening at the
college and career readiness level; demonstrate independence in gathering vocabulary knowledge when considering a word or phrase important to
comprehension or expression.
Unit/
Essential
Question
To Kill a
Mockingbird
By Harper Lee
“Is honor
inherent or
bestowed?
CCSS
Learning Target
Resources/
Mentor Texts
RL.9-10.2: Determine a theme or central idea
of a text and analyze in detail its
development over the course of the text,
including how it emerges and is shaped and
refined by specific details; provide an
objective summary of the text.
RL.9-10.3: Analyze how complex characters
(e.g., those with multiple or conflicting
motivations) develop over the course of a
text, interact with other characters, and
advance the plot or develop the theme.
RI.9-10.3: Analyze how the author unfolds an
analysis or series of ideas or events, including
the order in which the points are made, how
they are introduced and developed, and the
connections that are drawn between them.
RL.9-10.2: I can define
theme. I can analyze plot to
determine theme. I can
determine how specific
details in the text reveal and
continually refine a theme. I
can define summary and
compose an objective
summary stating the key
points of the text without
adding my own opinions or
feelings.
RL.9-10.3: I can identify and
explain the role of complex
characters in a text. I can
analyze how complex
“The Lynching of Jube
Benson” (by Laurence
Dunbar), “One Friday
Morning” (by Langston
Hughes), “The Scottsboro
Trials” (informational text),
“What I Really Want is
Someone Rolling Around in
the Text” (by ), “Not Poor,
Just Broke” (by Dick
Gregory), “Lawrence
Brewer Executed: White
Supremacist Executed for
Texas Dragging Murder,”
“The Hidden Songs of a
Secret Soul” (by Bob
Assessment
Formative: reading logs,
daily written responses to
the literature, reader
response, chapter quizzes,
English journal entries,
literary theories
culminating poster,
annotation group
presentation, class
discussion, study
questions, summaries,
pre-reading research,
Venn diagrams, racism
poem, I am… poem
To Kill a
Mockingbird
By Harper Lee
“Is honor
inherent or
bestowed?
W.9-10.2: Write informative/explanatory
texts to examine and convey complex ideas,
concepts, and information clearly and
accurately through the effective selection,
organization, and analysis of content.
SL.9-10.2: Integrate multiple sources of
information presented in diverse media or
formats (e.g., visually, quantitatively, orally)
evaluating the credibility and accuracy of
each source.
L.9-10.1: Demonstrate command of the
conventions of standard English grammar and
usage when writing or speaking.
L.9-10.4: Determine or clarify the meaning of
unknown and multiple-meaning words and
phrases based on grades 9–10 reading and
content, choosing flexibly from a range of
strategies.
characters develop over the
course of a text. I can
analyze how characters
develop through their
interactions with others. I
can analyze how complex
characters advance the plot
of a text and/or contribute
to the development of the
theme.
RI.9-10.3: I can analyze how
a text unfolds and determine
the impact that the order,
development, and/or
connections between points
have on the reader.
W.9-10.2: I can select a
topic and identify and gather
relevant information to
share with my audience. I
can define common
organizational/formatting
structures and determine
the structure(s) that will
allow me to organize my
complex ideas best. I can
analyze the information,
identify domain-specific
vocabulary for my topic, and
organize information into
broader categories using my
chosen structure. I can
present my information
maintaining an objective
tone and formal style that
includes an introduction that
previews what is to follow,
supporting details, varied
Greene), “Mushrooms”
poem (by Sylvia Plath), “My
Papa’s Waltz” poem (by
Theodore Roethke)
“The Lost Generation”
poem (YouTube clip), “The
Real Story of the Three
Little Pigs” (and YouTube
clip), “The Danger of a
Single Story” speech by
Chimamanda Adichie (TED
video clip), Detroit Lives
(documentary), Scottsboro
Trials and To Kill a
Mockingbird (YouTube clip),
To Kill a Mockingbird Great
Depression Background
(YouTube clip), “The Hidden
Songs of a Secret Soul” (by
Bob Greene), Black or
White: Something to Talk
About (YouTube clip),
“When They Ring Those
Golden Bells” song by
Natalie Merchant, Prom
Night in Mississippi (movie;
online), Sneetches (YouTube
clip), Mob Mentality
(YouTube clip), “Lawrence
Brewer Executed: White
Supremacist Executed for
Texas Dragging Murder”
(YouTube clip), The Tragedy
of the Scottsboro Trials
1932-1937 and the Triumph
of Judge James Horton
(YouTube clip), Tom
Summative:
1. How does Harper Lee
use characters and events
in To Kill a Mockingbird to
define courage/honor?
After reading Part One of
To Kill a Mockingbird,
write an essay that defines
courage/honor and
explains how three
different characters show
courage/honor. Support
your discussion with
evidence from the text.
2. Select a Dorothea
Lange photograph from
the Library of Congress
website. In a welldeveloped essay, explain
how the image helps
illuminate your
understanding of life in
the American South during
the Great Depression.
State your thesis clearly
and include at least three
pieces of evidence to
support it.
3. Select a quotation from
one of the characters in To
Kill a Mockingbird and
write an
informative/explanatory
essay that explains what
the quotation reveals
about the theme of
courage/honor in the
novel.
.
To Kill a
Mockingbird
By Harper Lee
“Is honor
inherent or
bestowed?
transitions, and a concluding
statement/section that
supports the information
presented.
SL.9-10.2: I can identify
various purposes for
presenting information to a
reader or audience. I can
analyze the information
presented in diverse media
and formats and integrate
the information to gain an
overall understanding of the
topic presented. I can
evaluate the credibility and
accuracy of various
presentations.
L.9-10.1: I can define and
identify parallel structures. I
can recognize when I have
not used parallel structure in
my writing. I can use
parallel structure correctly in
my writing. I can define and
identify various types of
phrases and clauses. I can
use appropriate phrases and
clauses to convey specific
meaning and add variety and
interest to writing or
presentations.
L.9-10.4: I can infer the
meaning of unknown words
using context clues. I can
recognize and define
common affixes and roots. I
can break down unknown
words into units of meaning
Robinson mock trial script,
To Kill a Mockingbird novels
by Harper Lee, To Kill a
Mockingbird film (1962),
Dorothea Lange Great
Depression photos (Library
of Congress), To Kill a
Mockingbird background
notes
4. Select a descriptive
passage from To Kill a
Mockingbird and recite
from memory.
5. Present several
photographs of small
southern towns during the
Great Depression from the
Library of Congress’s
collections and compare
them to the description of
Maycomb, AL in To Kill a
Mockingbird. Explain
which rendering is more
vivid to you and why.
State your thesis clearly
and include at least three
pieces of evidence to
support it. Record your
presentation and publish
it on the class website.
6. To Kill a Mockingbird
unit test
7. Describe whether the
1962 film version of To Kill
a Mockingbird is faithful
to the novel. Cite
evidence for why or why
not, explaining why you
think the film’s director
chose to omit or
emphasize certain events.
State your thesis clearly
and include at least three
pieces of evidence to
support your thesis.
8. Write a well-developed
essay in which you trace
to infer the definition of the
unknown word. I can use
patterns of word changes to
determine a word’s meaning
or part of speech, and/or its
etymology by consulting
general and specialized
reference materials
To Kill a
Mockingbird
By Harper Lee
“Is honor
inherent or
bestowed?
Unit/
Essential
Question
CCSS
Learning Target
the development of a
particular theme in To Kill
a Mockingbird and
compare it with a theme
presented in one of the
short stories read in class.
State your thesis clearly
and include at least three
pieces of evidence to
support your thesis.
Resources/
Mentor Texts
Assessment